An Oak Grove man was sentenced in federal court on Tuesday for distributing the heroin that resulted in the overdose death of an Arizona man.
The office of the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, Timothy Garrison, said the incident took place nearly two years ago. The man from Arizona was visiting his family in Lee’s Summit.
U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips sentenced 35-year-old Joshua Austin Leroux, to 20 years in federal prison without parole.
On Nov. 13, 2019, Leroux pleaded guilty to one count of distributing heroin that caused the death of a man identified in court documents as “M.A.C.”Leroux admitted that he had, in fact, distributed heroin to the victim on Sept. 3, 2017.
After the man acquired the heroin from Leroux, he ingested it at some point on Sept. 3, or the morning of Sept. 4, 2017. After conducting an autopsy, the Jackson County Medical Examiner declared that the cause of the M.A.C.’s death was heroin intoxication.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney D. Michael Green. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Jackson County Drug Task Force.